New York City Marathon

NYC marathon runner Yolanda Roman stands near the finish line with her family including brother Juan, mother Viviana, boyfriend Charlie Santos, cousin Sonia Ariza and her husband Eli Modesto, and nieces Madelyn and Melanie. Photo by Rebeca Corleto.

Yolanda Roman ran her first marathon today. She finished the New York City Marathon in about five and a half hours, but her time was not the first thing on her mind.

“I’m running for my daughter and now my grandfather.”

Roman’s baby daughter, Chloe, passed away from a brain disorder. It was shortly after her daughter’s death that she took up running, as something to hold onto and get through her grief. Her grandfather also passed away this year.

“It means everything to be able to run for her,” she said. “Everything. It was hard but I’m doing it for her.”

Roman’s brother, Juan Roman, came to cheer her on. The Roman family are lifelong New Yorkers. They live on 62nd Street, just a few blocks from where they waited to meet Yolanda after the race. He waited with their mother Viviana and Yolanda’s boyfriend, Charlie Santos, at the family reception area after the finish line.

“I’m used to this,” said Juan Roman. “I was born in New York City, so I know the marathon, but this is the first year we’ve been involved. After my sister’s daughter passed away, we have a reason to be here. And she has a purpose to be here—her daughter and our grandpa.”

Juan Roman proudly explained that to get here today, his sister had to complete trial runs with qualifying times. She began her training schedule a year ago.

Their cousin, Sonia Ariza, and her husband, Eli Modesto, along with their daughters Madelyn,7, and Melanie, 4,, came from Brooklyn to support Roman. Madelyn and Melanie played and ran around while they waited to greet their aunt. Ariza and Modesto took turn holding high a pink sign with glittering letters spelling out, “RUN FOR CHLOE.” When Roman finally reached her family, she was greeted with hugs, tears, and congratulations.

“We saw her running when she ran through Brooklyn,” said Ariza. “We live in Brooklyn, so we wanted to watch her there, and then we came here to see her at the finish line.”

There were two moments along the 26.2-mile run that stood out to Roman. The first occurred during a difficult section of the race.

“In the Bronx, my leg started cramping,” she said. “It was cramping so bad and then I saw on the side of the path, there were Mexican people rubbing people’s legs. That helped me get through. And then, crossing that finish line,I didn’t believe it when I crossed the line. It was a good day. A good run. I’m so happy I finished and saw my family here.”

Roman’s spirit is strong. Even after completing the longest run of her life, she had no intention of resting tonight.

Keith Claxton has been attending the race for the five years in a row. A person he met on the sideline gave him the sign, but Claxton cheers for everybody.” – Photo by Lisa Setyon

For the fifth year in a row, Keith Claxton, 53, of Eastchester Road in the Bronx, stood near the Willis Avenue Bridge encouraging the runners soaked in sweat to finish the race.

“I love the sport and I think it is something awesome that people run 26.2 miles,” Claxton said. “I just come to show my support for them. It is the least I can do.”

Today , 21 miles away from the finish line, Claxton, an accountant originally from the Virgin Islands, was among the thousands of spectators, waving, cheering and pushing the runners to get through the Bronx. Every year Claxton arrives at 8 a.m. and stands by himself, in a red track jacket, grey sweatpants and Nike sneakers.

While most of the other spectators are in groups and at the bridge to support a friend or family member, Claxton is there to support everyone.

“I cheer the last person to come across so I’m going to be here until the night,” Claxton said. “It just gives me a good feeling to be here, to be able to cheer them on, because, if they can run 26.2 miles, what is it for me to just turn up here and cheer?”

Claxton has lived in the Bronx for the past 25 years. For him, having the marathon in his neighborhood is also a way to add color to an area that has often been discredited.

“It gives people an opportunity to see a little part of the Bronx,” Claxton said. “I wish they could have gone more inside the Bronx so they get a better understanding of what the Bronx is.”

Claxton also sees it as a good way to gather communities together.

“Young, old, black, white, all nationalities are here,” Claxton said. “A sport like this bring everyone together. It just supports one cause, no division, just a marathon.”

Ten years ago Claxton used to run. But with a new job and taking care of his two children, Claxton stopped. But as he watched runners run past him, Claxton was envious and felt it was time for him to run again.

“I got caught up with just life,” Claxton said. “Sometimes you tend to put your hobbies on hold just to make a living. Now my two boys are 29 and 22. I feel like it is just time for me to go back out there and do me.”

His goal for next year is to run the marathon.

“My part right now is just to cheer,” he said “Hopefully next year, I’ll be running and I’ll have someone to cheer for me so I’m excited about it.”

If Claxton was looking forward to attending the marathon, the highlight of his day was seeing marathon winner May’s Keitany’s performance.

“She was sprinting and killed the hill in a sprint,” Claxton said. “I almost didn’t even see her, nobody was nowhere close, she really dominated the field this year. This a repeat for her, the third times she wins that in a row, it’s a big deal.”

Luiz Morales, 20, stands near 62nd Street and 1st Avenue in Manhattan as he waits for his father, Alex, to run past the 16-mile mark of the course on Nov. 6, 2016. Hundreds of people lined 1st Avenue on both sides encouraging marathoners as they ran past with handmade signs and enlarged photos. Photo by Razi Syed.

Standing along the sidewalk at 62nd Avenue and 1st Avenue, Luiz Morales was waiting restlessly among the throngs of supporters and well-wishers who cheered on New York City Marathon runners.

Around noon today, the 20-year-old Morales lifted his head every 10 seconds or so, and scanned over the throngs of people who lined 1st Avenue in an attempt to make sure Morales would see his father, Alex, pass what was a little bit beyond the 16-mile mark.

“I need to be focused because at any moment he could pass,” Morales said of his 52-year-old father, who flew in from Puebla, Mexico — a major metropolis located southeast of Mexico City. “He’s running New York for the ninth time.

The marathon, which is in its 46th year, is the largest marathon in the world, with roughly 50,000 people completing the 26.2-mile course for recent years. Since 1970, when there were just 127 entrants and 55 finishers, over 1,000,000 people have partaken in the marathon.

Morales has traveled with his father around the world to run in marathons. He said standing among the crowd and encouraging his father as he ran was the most enjoyable part of the race.

“It’s fantastic for my dad and all the runners for the support from me and all the other people,” Morales said. “I think it’s great.”

The atmosphere along 1st Avenue was jovial, as people supported their friends and relatives on with signs and cheers, with the constant sound of rock and pop music in the background.

While the first six years of the marathon consisted of just laps around Central Park, for the past 40 years the route has snaked its way through all five of the city’s boroughs.

Runners start the race in Staten Island, cross the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and through a variety of Brooklyn neighborhoods, over the Pulaski Bridge into Queens and across the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan. Runners then make their way uptown, crossing into The Bronx briefly and before coming back to Manhattan, where the race finishes at Central Park South.

Over the next couple hours, Morales will move on to Harlem and Central Park to cheer on his dad as he came up to the final miles of the race and crossed the finish line.

“The sound, all the people that are cheering for their own people are fantastic,” Morales said, explaining why the New York marathon is the favorite of him and his father. “The weather is fantastic, the city is fantastic.”

This is the ninth time that Morales has accompanied his father to New York City Marathon, which will end with their traditional post-run celebratory meal of hot dogs.

With runners from over 100 countries represented, the city’s marathon is a true international affair. With two blocks near the course’s 16-mile mark, flags for Sweden, Germany, Mexico and Spain were visible, among the handmade signs and enlarged photos held aloft by spectators.

A committed athlete who focused his energy on playing soccer before he pivoted to long-distance running, Morales said his father’s motivation to run came to him in spiritual terms.

“His inspiration is the uncles and cousins who’ve passed away,” Morales said. “He sees it, like, ‘This marathon is for all the people that pass away.’”

Mitch Feng, left, Anita Chen in the middle, their son in the front right, and friends, cheer on Chen’s six colleagues who are running for the Dream Corps charity. By Jennifer Cohen

Bells, whistles, cheers, and music blasted the streets on First Avenue as nearly 50,000 runners made their way through the affluent neighborhood of the Upper East Side.

Anita Chen, her husband Mitch Feng, their son, and friends live just down the street from where they stood to cheer on their colleagues on 77th Street and First Avenue. The neighborhood is known for being the most affluent in the city, with celebrity residents and upper class families, but today it was filled with an array of people supporting their friends and family running in the marathon.

Chen’s six colleagues ran today to raise money for the Dream Corps charity, which helps fund underprivileged children in rural areas of China with books and education. Almost $3,000 will was raised from the marathon to help provide the resources needed to educate the children in rural China.

“Rural China children, we are emphasizing, don’t have as much resources as the Metropolitan area that’s why they need help and we help them,” said Chen, an NYU Stern Alumni.

Chen has been running marathons for the last seven years. In 2013 she ran the TCS New York City Marathon and will again run it next year. This year for the 46th annual TCS NYC Marathon, Chen decided to be on the sidelines to cheer on her colleagues who helped raise money for the charity. She is very excited to come back next year as it makes her feel so humble compared to other cities she has ran in before.

“This marathon is a party for New York City and it definitely is one of the biggest events,” with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in second and the Yankee’s Parade in third, if they win, said Chen.

One of Anita’s colleagues, Yun Chen, took a break from her run to stop and took a picture with the sign that was made for her. With only 9 more miles to go, she smiled for the photo and headed back on the road to finish strong.

Chen and her family have walked from their home the last couple of years to watch the marathon. Although his wife is a big runner, Feng is not. He said it would be nice, but it is a lot of hard work to be able to run that long.

“Twenty-six point two miles oh my god, it takes such a long time to even pronounce that,” said Feng.

They may not run together, but the whole family takes the time to cheer on colleagues and watch everyone run up First Avenue. If people didn’t hold signs with their friend or family members name on it then they rang cowbells and screamed their names. It’s hard not get into the spirit of the marathon.

“You walk around there’s so much energy all over the place, it’s very exciting to everybody,” said Feng.

With her hands cupped around her mouth, Samantha Romero stood with a small group of friends and leaned over the barricades belting uplifting words and calling out runners by name.

Like many, Romero, a native of Miami, Fla., stood on the sidelines of the 2015 New York City Marathon on Sunday night near the Columbus Circle entrance to Central Park to lend her support to friends, strangers and her mother.

“She’s in her 50s and killing it,” Romero said. “I’m very excited for her.”

Romero’s mother was one of the 14,326 lottery applicants selected to run in the marathon.

“She started running in her 40s,” Romero said. “She’s never been athletic in her life. She was just inspired by this movement and if someone her age can get up and do that it’s pretty amazing to see.”

Over 80,080 runners applied for the lottery, with only around 18 percent being accepted. Runners could also by submitting previous marathon times that met the marathon’s qualifying standards.

What made this race so special to Romero and her mother is the fact that she had never pushed through a total of 26.2 straight grueling miles before.

“She’s done a bunch of halves and this is her first time,’ she said. “She’s so excited.
Romero’s friend, Elizabeth Guess, was cheering by her side.

If you didn’t realize the runners names were printed on their chests, you might think Guess knew every participant forging through to the finish line. Her voice carried above the crowd noise, one name after another.

Sala Cyril believes that finishing the New York City Marathon is an achievement itself, despite being one of the last placers in the event. Photo by Eugene Y. Santos

A few months ago, school director Sala Cyril, 38, took an opportunity of a lifetime. She would train and run this year’s New York City Marathon for the benefit of her institution, the Little Maroons Childcare Cooperative in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. It was the school’s 10th anniversary, and around $5,000 was crowdsources and would be given to Cyril when she finished the marathon.

With barely any marathon experience under her belt, she trained for only four months.

“I even had a concussion in the last two weeks,” she said. “I wasn’t able to train fully.”

More than the physical training, Cyril of Bedford-Syuyvesant said that she had to train her mind as well to strengthen her endurance.

Today, at around 11:00 am, Cyril found herself in the starting line. She put her game face on. She told herself she would finish the race no matter what.

Eight hours later she crossed the finish line.

“I just really pushed myself to do my best,” she said. “My family went out to support me. My colleagues went as well, so I wanted to show my loved ones that I could finish the race. This is definitely the most intense experience I’ve had in my life so far.”

The marathon, as Cyril put it, was challenging.

“I was slow and I took many bathroom breaks,” she said. “The water and energy stations even malfunctioned so it was hard. It even became discouraging after a while because there were less people cheering me on, so it was a matter of mental strength, too.”

But at the end of the race she was all smiles. She was greeted immediately by her loved ones. She took her hard-earned medal, and grabbed a marathon cape and goodies along the way. The race was officially over.

“I feel really successful and also tired,” she said, as she made her way out of Central Park. “I can’t join the NYC marathon next year as I wasn’t able to participate in the qualifying race for it. I do look forward to running in its 2017 edition, even if I’m not going to raise funds for my school. Next time, I just want to run the whole thing and just enjoy it better. There’s definitely room for improvement in my performance.”

For now, Cyril is happy to fulfill her commitment to Little Maroons. The school, which was established in 2005, aims to “reinforce” African education (ideologies, culture, and history) to black children, as a means of reminding them of their roots and nurturing their love for learning. The money that Cyril was able to raise will go to various educational endeavors, such as school supplies.

Cyril said the marathon gave her a fresher perspective on motherhood, as she felt like an inspiration to her daughters to keep pursuing their dreams no matter what gets in the way. She advised would-be marathoners to “not be afraid of being slow in the race because all you need to succeed are discipline and practice. The goal is to finish the race no matter what.”

Jackie McMahon is all smiles as she anxiously waits in Bay Ridge for her NYPD coworker to run by in today’s New York City Marathon. Photo by Alexandra Zuccaro

Even before the first New York Marathon runner hit the track this morning, NYPD officers could be seen in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn lining the streets with caution tape and blocking off roads with their squad cars. As the crowds started to emerge around 9:30 a.m., additional officers were walking up and down the streets, trying to clear walkways and control the abundant excitement.

But the uniformed officials weren’t the only NYPD attendees at the marathon this morning. Many members of the NYPD were seen running in the race, with their supportive coworkers flocking to the sidelines to cheer them on.

Jackie McMahon, an NYPD employee, was one of these cheerleaders. She was more than happy to get up early to cheer on her comrades.

“I always enjoy watching the marathon,” said McMahon. “I have a sergeant who I work with who is running. I don’t know if I will see her in this huge crowd, but I told her I would be here.”

Once the race was in full swing, McMahon waved and smiled at all the runners who were sporting NYPD shirts “Way to go NYPD!” she shouted.

The crowd chants, “Go NYPD” as officers, sporting their official marathon shirts, run through Bay Ridge. Photo by Alexandra Zuccaro

Along with her NYPD coworkers, McMahon was also very excited to see the handicapped runners, who started trickling in during the early hours of the race. The crowds was sparse , but McMahon makes a special effort each year to see the handicapped participants roll by in their wheelchairs.

“My sister is handicapped, so I just feel very supportive towards the handicapped runners,”she said.

Although McMahon has watched past marathons all around the city, she now loves watching in her Bay Ridge neighborhood. The energy here is different she said.

“It’s not as big of a crowd as you would get in Manhattan, but the energy is very high because they are just starting out,” she said.

In Bay Ridge, the buzz was definitely alive, with runners stopping along the sides to take selfies with the viewers or high-fiving the kids sticking their hands out as they were held over the railing by their parents.

Bay Ridge spectators also made an effort to keep the runners pumped. While marathon runners trudged up the hill on 94th St, a group of locals, including a few NYPD officers, chanted “Welcome to Brooklyn!” Some of the runners waved to the officers and cheerers in response, and used that hype to make it around the upcoming turn onto 4th Avenue.

“There’s a big police presence and it’s exciting,” said McMahon. “It’s what makes it a nice event.”

From the far south side of Williamsburg, under the bridge and all the way to the tip of Greenpoint, this year’s New York City Marathon was one big block party for the trendy neighborhood. Nearly every corner featured a live DJ or indie band performance, and crowds of young, impeccably dressed Brooklynites clustered together mid-day to dance along to the music and support runners.

At certain points, interludes in dances moves were punctuated by the all too familiar pauses to check an iPhone, which were followed by hurried shouts that the runner was nearby. For some spectators, their smartphones served the purpose of tracking their favorite runner.

Steven Schafer. stood curbside on Bedford Avenue and North 10th Street tracking the progress of his girlfriend, who was steadily coming up the avenue, as indicated by a moving blue tag. He had flown in from London that previous Friday to surprise her, and meet with her mother, who flew in from Iowa to cheer her own. They had been excitedly tracking her progress on the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon Mobile App, which detailed not only where the runner was, but also noted her pace in real time throughout the marathon.

“We could watch her run through the neighborhoods this morning over breakfast,” he said. “When she started coming up Bedford Ave we knew we had to find a spot on the sidewalk.”

Some spectators held signs that had one general message of support on one side and a personalized message as their friend or family member breezed by. One group of women hailed down their favorite runner with an iPad mini, the app opened as the runner moved up the block and she stopped briefly to hand off the sweatshirt tied around her waist.

The app is powered by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which became the new partner and title sponsor of the New York Road Runners (NYRR) this past year, after supporting the marathon as a technology consulting partner since 2010. TCS is an Indian multinational IT service, consulting and business solutions company that operates in 46 countries and is one of the biggest companies in India. In a 2015 Forbes “World’s Most Innovative Companies Ranking,” TCS was ranked 64th overall, making it amongst the highest ranked IT companies on the list based on revenues.

But beyond expertise, the partnership between TCS and NYRR runs deep. The company’s CEO, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, “Chandra,” began running later in life, and has run five marathons, according to the NYRR website which proudly proclaims, “He’s one of us.”

The app TCS created allows supporters to track their favorite runners live with splits at the start, every 5 kilometers, at the halfway point and, most importantly, marked the finish.

Kishel John holds a sign and cheers at the 2015 New York City Marathon. Photo by Taisha Henry

Hundreds of 2015 New York City Marathon supporters lined up along 4th avenue in Downtown Brooklyn, which marked the eighth mile of the marathon’s course.

Among the supporters stood Kishel John of Brownsville, Brooklyn. John came to support not only her two friends who were running today, but to cheer for all the runners. John’s friends have both overcome breast cancer, she said as she pointed to her pink bracelet with pink ribbons marked around it, the universal symbol for a breast cancer supporter.

“I just want to be here and see them at a milestone,” she said. “You never know what’s going to happen in your life,”

John saw the hard work her friend put into training for the marathon and said she may do the same someday.

“One of my friends started training two years ago, doing mini marathons and half marathons,” she said. “It takes a lot of training and a lot of dedication to sacrifice and participate in this event.”

John believes that participating in the race is more than a fun thing to say you did once, she believes it’s about overcoming situations, gaining the mental and physical preparedness to participate in the marathon.

“I think it’s more than a bucket list, it’s something you see younger people and older people doing,” she said. “It’s just about having a point in your life when you have that mental determination. It’s not about running 20 miles, it’s about preparing yourself for this journey no matter what.”

Among the supporters sat Ricky Dick in his wheelchair cheering on the adaptive athletes who were hand-cycling in the marathon.

Ricky Dick smiles as the New City Marathon participants pass by. It’s his first year attending the marathon. Seeing other’s with disabilities participate have inspired him, he said. Photo by Taisha Henry.

Dick, who has from spina bifida, laughed and talked with other spectators while never forgetting to cheer for those passing by. It was his first time attending the marathon, should the weather allow it, he won’t miss another. He said he was happy to see other people with disabilities participate in the race.

“You have to be very athletic to do something like this,” he said. “As someone with a disability, I’m very excited just to see the athletes with a disability do this marathon.”

For Dick, attending the race encouraged him to try a marathon one day, something he was always told to try, but never felt he would do.

Yannis Glyptis, 48, and his two daughters Maria, 13,(left) and Thaila, 12, (right) waited for mother and wife, Marilena to pass by East Harlem to show their support for her first marathon. Photo by Ugonma Ubani-Ebere

As the sun peeked through the clouds in the afternoon, and used green cups littered the streets of East Harlem, many runners who had been running since the early morning, trudged on to finish the New York Marathon. Spectators, families, and friends from every part of New York City and all over the world, aligned the streets with signs and shirts dedicated to their loved ones, encouraging them to finish.

One of the spectators, Yannis Glyptis, 48, a Greece native, now living in Dykers Heights, Brooklyn, waited anxiously for his wife, Marilena Glyptis, 37, to pass through East Harlem at 117th Street and 1st Avenue. His two daughters, Maria,13, and Thaila,12, wore “Mommy Strong” shirts and held signs, as they waited for her.

“My wife has been running for three to four years,”he said. “She has done half marathons, but this is her first time running a marathon, and this is our first marathon as a family.”

Glyptis, who has run half marathons with his wife has always encouraged her as a runner.

“We always carry a sign that says “Mommy Strong” every time she runs,” he said. “Wherever she goes, when ever she runs, we have it.”

The Glyptis always carry a “Mommy Strong” sign to show support for Marilena whenever she runs.Photo by Ugonma Ubani-Ebere

This year for her first marathon, Glyptis and his daughters have been following Marilena at every stop possible to encourage her every step of the way.

“We followed her from Brooklyn,” he said. “We did a stop in Queens, here at East Harlem, and now we are headed to the other side of Manhattan to follow her to the finish line.”

Glyptis proudly wore the Greek flag as a cape as people stopped to take pictures of him and his daughters.

“Brooklyn has a big Greek community,” he said. “But New York is the center for all cultures, and this marathon is for everybody because your soul decides what you can do, and what you can accomplish. “

Finally came running down the street. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail with a pink headband, and she wore her “Mommy Strong” shirt to match her daughters. Though she was sweaty, she took her headphones out of her ears, smiled and stopped to take pictures with her family.

“She’s such a good role model, and she sets just a really hard standard for me,”her daughter Maria said. “I really want to run a marathon myself when I grow up, so she is really pushing me to do well myself.”